Kenichi x Shigure
by crobosky
Summary: An unbelievably powerful man visits Ryozanpaku and does the unthinkable!
1. Chapter 1

Shigure x Kenichi

CHAPTER 1

"MIU, NOOO!"

Kenichi screamed as he came out of his nightmare. The moon was still lighting the half-destroyed courtyard, and in the doorway staring up sat Shigure.

Kenichi rose from his bed and walked towards her.

"You've... had a bad dream...?" she said, as he sat down beside her.

He hadn't spoken much to her since it all happened, maybe it was still too soon...

"Yeah... I just... I miss them... I miss her... and it's all my... my fault..." he said, fighting back the tears that threatened to burst out.

Shigure turned her head and looked at him, her light purple eyes shining in the moonlight. Kenichi could see they were bloodshot. She had been crying...

"Shigure..." he choked. Before he could react, she turned and drew him into an embrace.

She pulled his head closer and said, "You know it wasn't your fault..."

Overcome with grief and guilt, Kenichi buried his head in her breasts and began to weep. He hadn't let his emotions overcome him since it happened, but now it was like a dam breaking.

Shigure held him tight and rested her chin on the top of his head. She had been crying before, but now she felt she needed to comfort him. She held him until he fell back to sleep.

Kenichi woke with a start, the morning light pouring into the room. He was in his bed, but he couldn't remember returning to it. He looked down to see the sleeping form of Shigure leaning on the edge of his bed.

"She must have carried me here, and stayed by my side during the night." he thought as he brushed her hair away from her face.

Looking down at her, with the morning light shining in, he could almost imagine that nothing was wrong. She looked so peaceful, and yet he knew her dreams were likely just as bad as his.

"For now, the least I can do is return the favor." he said to himself as he quietly got out of bed. He picked her up gently, carried her to bed, and pulled the blanket over her.

As he turned to go, he kissed her gently on the head and said "Thank you." She shifted slightly, but didn't wake.

* * *

><p>Kenichi walked out into the courtyard, looking over the battlefield from just two days ago:<p>

That bastard had been stronger than any of them had imagined. He came in and killed his masters one by one until he came to them. Kenichi had placed himself in front of Miu to protect her, but he might as well have been a blade of grass for all the resistance he was able to put up. The man turned towards Miu and reached out with his hand. Miu tried to fight back but could do nothing.

"MIU!" Kenichi screamed, rage welling up inside him. Powered by his rage, he charged at the man.

"Oho! It seems you care for this one! We'll have to do something about that!" The man said while sneering at him.

With one powerful punch, the man sent Kenichi flying back against the wall, landing with a horrible crash.

He was down, he couldn't move. All he could do was watch, horrified, as the man picked up the struggling Miu by the neck as if it were nothing and took her life. Before she died she had looked at Kenichi with a strange smile as if to say, "It's okay, I give my life gladly for you."

An even greater rage overcame him, " MIU, NOOO!" he screamed.

Kenichi charged again.

"How does it feel, boy?"

SMASH! This time it was a kick that sent him hurtling backward.

"To have everyone you care about killed in front of you?" the man snarled.

"What... happened... here?!"

Shigure had been out hunting her father's swords, and just happened to be coming back at the worst possible moment. The look on her face was unlike any Kenichi had seen her make.

"Shigure... no..."

She looked at the man, full of fury, and began to charge him. The shuriken flew by him as if he weren't there, and when she jumped at him with her sword blazing down he caught it in his bare hand and threw it away from her with ease.

"No!"

The man grabbed Shigure the same way he had grabbed Miu...

"NNOOOOOO!"

Kenichi's rage finally boiled over.

"PUT HER DOWN YOU BASTARD!"

The man looked lazily over at him and muttered another "Oho?"

The man blinked, and in the next instant, Kenichi was standing two feet away, an immense and fiery aura billowing around him. The man got a curious look in his eye and tossed Shigure aside, still alive.

"How interesting... you have an even greater reaction to me threatening this woman... Perhaps even you weren't aware of these feelings..."

The man looked between the two of them, then shrugged.

"Well, no matter. With my next punch I'll sit you back down, and make you watch as I SLOWLY kill this woman you seem to care so deeply for."

Kenichi's aura blazed even higher while the man threw a massive punch directly at his face.

"Wha..?!"

The expression on the man's face was pure surprise when Kenichi caught his fist.

"I won't let you lay a FUCKING finger on her, you BASTARD!" Kenichi spat at him.

The man tried to pull his hand out of Kenichi's grasp, to no avail.

The last thing Kenichi remembered was the terror in the man's eyes. Then all was blackness.

The next thing he knew, he woke up to a darkened sky, with Shigure laying her head and arms across his chest. She was sobbing.

He reached up slowly and put his hand on her head, and she jumped.

"I... I thought..." She began...

"So did I." Kenichi replied.

Shigure pulled him into an embrace and continued to weep. It was all Kenichi could do to keep from weeping with her. He put his arms around her and tried to comfort her.

Over her shoulder he could see the battlefield. Sakaki-sensei... Apachai... Kensei... everyone... Even the elder known as the Invincible Superman... all dead... and there... Miu...

There was a terrible feeling in his heart, like a hole was torn right through it. As tears began to well up in his eyes, he saw something else...

The man who had killed them all, or... what was left of him. It was such a mess he could barely tell it was him, but somehow he knew.

Shigure finally pulled away from him, perhaps having spent all her tears for the moment, and looked him in the eyes. It was like she was searching for something, making sure whatever had possessed him when he tore that man apart was gone.

Satisfied, she stood up, offered her hand to Kenichi, and helped him stand as well. All things considered they had come out of the ordeal fairly well physically, though neither of them thought they would be able to recover emotionally. Not any time soon at least.

They spent the next day without speaking much. They built funeral pyres for each of the masters and Miu, and stayed vigil late into the night when the fires finally burned out.

Kenichi was the first to turn in, figuring he should at least rest.

* * *

><p>Shigure felt herself being lifted by strong, gentle arms. She sneaked a glance, and saw it was Kenichi carrying her. She had fallen asleep by the side of his bed after she had moved him, and now he was doing the same thing for her. She felt her face begin to flush, so she quietly calmed herself so he wouldn't notice.<p>

She then felt herself being lowered onto the bed, and the blanket being pulled up to cover her.

She felt something warm on her forehead, and then heard Kenichi say, "Thank you."

Shigure tried not to blush. She shifted slightly, and kept her eyes closed.

She heard Kenichi walk from the room, so she opened her eyes. She lay staring at the ceiling for a few minutes breathing heavily. These feelings she was having weren't appropriate but... so much has changed... maybe it would be... okay...

She slowly drifted back to sleep, Kenichi weighing heavily on her thoughts.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Shigure woke from her sleep, still thinking about earlier. Kenichi had carried her back to her bed. She remembered the kiss on her forehead, the whispered thanks.

She walked out into the courtyard and found Kenichi practicing with her sword. It surprised her, he had always been so against using weapons. Whether out of fear of her training, or simply on principle, she had never figured out. It looked like he was practicing the basics of Ken-do, an open book lying on the ground next to him. "He never changes." she thought to herself.

Kenichi stopped and looked over at her, "I didn't want to wake you, I figured you could use some rest after everything that happened, and you had only just gotten back from one of your hunts as well."

"My sword..." She started.

"I'm really sorry! I didn't mean to step out of line, I just saw it lying there and grabbed it without thinking..." He stammered.

"No... it's.. fine..." She finished.

It made her happy to see him wielding her sword. His form was sloppy, and his footing was all wrong, but it was still the first happy sight she had seen in days.

"Hold it... like this..." She showed him.

She then began to train him in the way of the sword.

* * *

><p>Later that day, after hours of training, they sat in the yard resting.<p>

"You learn... quickly..." Shigure said, impressed and pleased by his progress.

Kenichi looked at her and smiled, a bit sadly.

"After all the training I've been put through by the... the other masters... I guess... I've learned to focus more..." Kenichi replied, stumbling over his words when he thought about the masters.

"Why did you want to..." Shigure started.

"Why did I suddenly decide to train with your sword?" Kenichi said, "Because I have to become stronger. I have to become stronger than even the masters were. Else I won't be able to protect anyone else."

Shigure looked at him, a bit puzzled, "But you..."

"I wasn't strong enough to protect her! It's my fault she died! I couldn't even lift a finger to fight against that man!" Kenichi looked as though he might cry again, but then another thought entered his mind.

"Which brings up another question, what exactly did you do to him? The last thing I remember is you charging him with your sword..."

Shigure was surprised at this, it seemed that he had blacked out and now assumed she was the one who had killed the man.

"You... don't remember? You were the one who stopped him.."

Kenichi almost laughed.

"What? How could that be? He was so much stronger than I was, he was even stronger than the elder! Besides, I thought I had passed out!"

Kenichi sat silently, trying to remember the events of the night, though not truly wanting to.

"You... became engulfed in your rage... when he was about to kill me..."

Kenichi looked up at her. He couldn't believe it. He had been angry before; he remembered how he felt when he saw Miu die... What Shigure was saying meant that...

"You mean... I really did kill him?"

Kenichi shuddered... He had never killed anyone before, it went against everything he believed in. He supposed he didn't regret it though, if it was in fact true.

"You should... go take a bath... It's getting late..." Shigure changed the subject.

Kenichi nodded, "Yeah, I'll do that. I could use a bath."

He went inside and grabbed a towel, then headed to the hot spring.

* * *

><p>Kenichi was relaxing in the hot spring when Shigure suddenly appeared.<p>

"Woah! Sorry, was I taking too long? I can get out now, just hold on!" Kenichi stammered.

Shigure dropped the towel that was covering her and got into the spring.

"No... It's ok... We've bathed together before..."

Kenichi couldn't help but stare, she was incredibly beautiful. Shigure noticed his stare and looked as if she were blushing, but it was probably just the heat of the spring. He quickly averted his gaze, suddenly realizing what he had been doing. They sat in an uncomfortable silence for some time, until he rose and turned to leave, covering himself with his towel.

"I'll head back now, I've been in here too long!"

Kenichi grabbed his things and darted back to the main building. The image of Shigure's nude body still on his mind.

Some time later, Kenichi was sitting in the doorway, staring across the moonlit yard. He heard footsteps and saw Shigure walking towards him.

"I-I'm sorry about earlier!" Kenichi said, still feeling a bit awkward about what happened at the hot spring.

"It's ok..." Shigure replied, as she sat next to him.

They sat in silence for what seemed like hours, just gazing into the moonlight. Kenichi began to doze off, but suddenly became aware of a weight that had appeared on his lap. Shigure had fallen asleep, head resting on his lap. He looked down at her sleeping form. Her face was glowing softly in the light of the moon. He had a huge hole in his heart where his love for Miu, and even the other masters, had been. Now they were gone, yet somehow he felt that Shigure had begun to fill that void.

He ran his fingers through her hair and fell asleep against the door frame, listening to the sound of her breathing.

It was their first peaceful night of sleep in days.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Shigure opened her eyes. It seemed she had never gone to bed. She slowly sat up and looked over, seeing Kenichi asleep against the door frame. She had slept the entire night with her head on his lap! Her face immediately turned red.

Instead of getting up and leaving though, she sat and looked at his face. Despite sleeping in such an unusual way, he seemed to be resting well. Did he know that she had fallen asleep like that? Her face felt even hotter now; how embarrassing. However... thinking about it also made her feel... happy.

Kenichi stirred. Opening his eyes, he looked over at Shigure and smiled.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked, a bit of amusement in his voice.

He did know! Shigure wasn't sure how to react.

"I... slept well... um... need to go..."

She was so embarrassed that she couldn't speak properly. She hastily got up and started walking away.

"Shigure..." Kenichi suddenly sounded more serious, "Whenever you're ready, we need to talk."

She stopped and looked back. What did he mean? Talk about what happened? Or maybe about something else...? Whatever the case, she needed to go calm herself down.

"O...Ok..." She responded, almost timidly.

With that she walked away, leaving Kenichi to his thoughts.

"Well, she seemed bothered about something. It's not like her to make a big deal out of something like falling asleep like that. Besides... I can't say I disliked it..."

Kenichi started to blush, and then felt guilty. Mere days after Miu had died, and it felt like he already was developing... feelings... for someone else.

"I can't disrespect her memory like that..."

Hoping to get his mind off of things, he walked out into the yard and began to practice what Shigure had trained him in the day before.

"I hope I'm doing this right..."

* * *

><p>Shigure sat, deep in thought, high up on the roof.<p>

"These feelings... they aren't new. It's just... different now."

The thought that they were now alone made her sad. She missed the company of the other masters, and the way she felt towards Kenichi felt wrong, in light of Miu's death.

There she sat, thinking about these things until, hours later, she made up her mind.

"I can't deny the ...feelings I have... for him, disciple or not. Also, knowing Miu for so long... She would never have wanted us to linger on her death."

So, having come to her conclusion, she went to speak with Kenichi.

She found him sitting down, taking a break from his practice.

"Hey, just in time! I think it's time we talked about something!" Kenichi said, standing as she came close.

"Yes, I have something to say..." Shigure said.

Kenichi figured she would, "Ok, you say what you want first. I figure we're thinking the same thing."

"No, you start..." Shigure returned, her face reddening slightly.

Kenichi then said, "No you... ahh... this could go on for a while. Ok, what I wanted to say was..."

"I... love you..."

"I don't think we should stay... wait, what?!" Kenichi stopped mid-sentence and looked at Shigure, who now looked a mix of surprised and... was it shy?

He wasn't sure what she had said because he was talking at the time, but it sounded like...

"Wait... did you just say..." Kenichi started.

"You think we should... leave?" Shigure said. She didn't know why she hadn't thought about this. Now that everyone was gone, it would be strange if the two of them continued to stay in a place they didn't even own.

They stood silent for what seemed like an hour.

Shigure broke the silence, "You're right... we need to leave this place"

She turned towards the direction of her room.

"Wait! What did you say just now?" Kenichi called out, "It sounded like you said..."

Shigure turned and looked at him, sadness in her eyes. It broke his heart to see it.

"It was foolish..." Shigure said before turning away again.

That was when Kenichi realized.

"She said she loves me." He thought, "Despite everything, she loves me..."

Then he blacked out. It all came swirling back to him, the events from that night... the things he had forgotten.

"PUT HER DOWN YOU BASTARD!" he had screamed, catching the attention of the man that was about to kill Shigure. The man that had killed everyone else.

He remembered the rage... the insurmountable fury. More importantly, he remembered what fueled it. Shigure... seeing her in such danger... it woke something frightening in him.

The man's words then came to him.

"... you have an even greater reaction to me threatening this woman... Perhaps even you weren't aware of these feelings..."

These feelings... it was so clear now...how had he not seen it before?

He had cared for Miu, wanted to protect her, he loved her... But he had gotten so wrapped up in those feelings over time that he failed to see the even greater love blossoming underneath.

Shigure... all the times she had been there for him... all the time she spent wishing she could teach him something... anything... She had been the one to train him the least, and yet the one who desired it the most.

When he accompanied her on the sword hunt that time... he should have seen it then, but he wasn't paying attention. How happy she looked every time she was able to impart some knowledge. Even the subtle smile on her face when he protected her back in the final battle. Even as much as she wanted to train him, her feelings ran much farther in a different direction. At some point, possibly after that battle, she had begun to see him as a man. And all this time, he had been failing to see her as anything but one of his masters...

"Kenichi! Don't leave me like this..."

Shigure was bent over Kenichi's fallen body. When he blacked out he had fallen on his face, causing her to turn around in shock. She held his head in her lap crying, praying that he would be ok. She didn't understand what happened, why had he fallen? Why would he not wake up?!

As her tears fell on his face, Kenichi opened his eyes. He felt a warmth in his heart as he looked up into Shigure's tear-filled eyes.

Before she could react to his sudden awakening, he reached up and put his hand behind her head, pulling her close. She let out a surprised sound as he kissed her lips. She felt the warm wetness of his mouth on hers, and then returned the kiss. She couldn't describe how she felt in any way besides happy. Happier than she had ever been.

She suddenly began to cry again. Kenichi pulled away from her, a look of concern on his face, but then he saw it...

... these were tears of joy.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Have you heard back from him yet?"

The voice came from a shadowy corner. There were two figures walking towards the middle of the room; one male, one female. The male one jumped at the sound of the voice.

"Jeez boss! Why you always gotta hang out in the dark like that?!"

The female figure stepped forward and pulled on a small chain. Light flooded the room illuminating the people inside. The man that had been in the corner was tall and lean, a scar going from his right ear down across his face. His short black hair was spiked up. The woman who had turned on the lights had waist length shockingly red hair, but was otherwise average build and height. The other man was also average height, but he was extremely muscular and had a large mustache on his chiseled face.

"Anywho... no boss, we haven't heard back from him."

The one called 'boss' got an angry look on his face,

"Shit! What's he playing at? We sent him on an easy mission, don't tell me those so called masters gave him trouble..."

He sat down in his chair and smashed his hand down on the table in front of him. This time it was the woman who spoke.

"Well boss, you know how he is. He could have gotten... sidetracked... on the way."

The 'boss' put his head in his hands and sighed.

"Well... Then I want you two to go and make sure he didn't get himself into too much trouble, and bring him back here."

The other man glanced over at the woman,

"Right on, boss. We'll get going then."

As the two were leaving the man reached out and grabbed her butt. The woman smacked his hand away and punched him in the face, making him laugh.

"Asshole..." She muttered as she followed behind him. Before she left the room she sneaked a glance back at the 'boss'. He was leaning back in the chair staring at the ceiling.

Outside the room she found the other man waiting for her. She walked up to him and kissed him where she had punched.

"Ya know that hurt, you could have lightened up a bit." He whined, pulling her in to kiss her on the lips.

"Do you think he suspects anything?"

She pulled back and looked at him accusingly, "If you keep pulling shit like that in there he might figure it out!"

The man laughed, "On the contrary! He'd probably start suspecting if I DIDN'T pull shit like that!"

The man's laughing face turned serious, "So what do you think about this? Sending us out to fetch that idiot. I wonder if he has gotten himself into some trouble."

They started to walk down the hallway.

"It's possible, like I said in there: you know how he is."

A flash of worry crossed his face.

"Yeah," he replied, "and that's the problem..."

* * *

><p>Shigure stepped out into the sunlight, body glistening with sweat from their training.<p>

"You are... getting better..." she said.

Kenichi, barely able to stand, stumbled out behind her. He looked up at her and suddenly realized how her clothes were clinging to her body. When she looked back over her shoulder she noticed him staring. Shigure brushed the hair back from her face and took a long look at Kenichi. He had become so lean since he began his training. He had not been an unattractive boy, but now he was... Shigure turned away from him to hide her flushing face.

Kenichi saw her turn quickly away, it looked as if she had started to blush.

"S-So," Kenichi stammered, breaking the short silence, "do you have any more training for me today?"

Shigure took a moment to respond, "No... I think we should actually... start moving out."

Kenichi then remembered that he had been the one to bring that up. He had forgotten all about it since... well... immediately afterwards.

"Oh! Yeah I... suppose we should..." Kenichi began to feel a bit of dread. In truth he hadn't wanted to think about it since it likely meant parting ways.

"I guess... I'll have to go home." He said a bit sadly.

Shigure gave him a hurt look, "You won't... come with me?"

Kenichi looked up at her, heart giving a leap, "Well, yeah. I really would like to. I just didn't know if you'd want me along. I'd likely get in the way..."

At this Shigure walked over to Kenichi and took his face in her hands and kissed him. They had kissed several times since last night, and yet every time felt like the first time.

"I want you... with me..." Shigure said, quietly.

After this they both spent the rest of the day collecting their things and met at the front gate. It was weird, they had been here so long, but now they were leaving with no intentions of coming back.

Shigure looked sad. Kenichi grabbed her hand and held it. She smiled back at him, and they started walking away from Ryozanpaku for the last time.

"So..." Kenichi started, "where are we going?"

Silence.

"You uh... You don't actually know do you?"

Shigure looked over at him sheepishly, "I hadn't... given it much... thought."

Kenichi sighed and thought for a moment.

"Well I had planned on stopping by my house to let my family know what was going on, we could probably stay the night there while we figure it out."

Shigure nodded, and they started off towards Kenichi's home.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

"WHAAAAT!?"

Shigure and Kenichi were standing in his living room, having just told his parents the news about Ryozanpaku. He hadn't been back home in a long time, and coming under these circumstances wasn't great. He hadn't exactly thought about how this would play out. It definitely would have been a good idea to come here sooner, but with everything that happened... the last week had gone by in a blur. He told them this. His mother frowned at the response, but didn't press it any further.

"So wait... if this man came and killed the other masters... why didn't he kill either of you? What made him stop?"

Kenichi thought about what had happened and a cold chill ran up his spine. He had killed him, but he definitely didn't want to tell them that. That was something he would be happy if he could keep just between Shigure and him, even if it was self defense.

"Well he uh... I..."

"He just... left..." Shigure broke in.

Kenichi's mom frowned again, and his dad replied, "He just left? Like that? Well... who the hell knows why someone like that would do anything. Are you sure he won't come back? Have you told the police?!"

No, he won't come back, I killed him. I definitely haven't told the police, not that they could do anything with a guy like that if he were alive. He couldn't say this though.

"So wait... where's Honoka? This news will hit her pretty hard..."

Kenichi's dad glanced in the direction of his gun cabinet and his hand twitched, "Where do you think she is?"

"Tanimoto..." Honoka had been spending more and more time with him. She was sixteen now, and they had been hanging out for years... Still, he trusted Tanimoto, but that didn't mean he wouldn't worry. Tanimoto did have a tendency to hang out with a rough crowd.

"So... do you guys mind if we stay here tonight so we can figure out what we're going to do?"

His mom looked at Shigure and then at him, "Stay... together?"

Kenichi realized what she was getting at, "I-I mean... I would sleep on the couch, she could take my old room." He looked over at Shigure, who had been silent through most of the conversation. She was looking around the room, as if she weren't even listening.

"Well sure, that would be ok. I'll just go finish preparing dinner, could you come help me for a minute?" His mom had a look that didn't leave room for any argument. He followed her into the other room where she turned around and gave him a stern look.

"You killed him, didn't you?" She asked bluntly.

Kenichi was taken aback. "I, uh... what..."

His mom gave him a look that said "Don't lie to me, I already know".

Since it seemed she already figured it out, he told her everything from the beginning. The man had come in and killed everyone but him, and then Shigure showed up. His reaction to her being threatened, and then... what he did... He spared some of the worst details.

"I see..." His mom looked outside the room at Shigure, who was sitting across from his dad not saying anything. He looked uncomfortable.

"We can't tell your dad about that, you know how he can get. He would worry too much. It was clearly self defense though, so it's not as if you did anything wrong..."

Kenichi looked at his feet. It may not have been wrong and he may have deserved it, but it still felt wrong. He had killed someone. He shuddered again.

"So... you and her...?"

Kenichi looked up quickly and turned red. This was the other thing he didn't know if he could explain. Up until now it had been clear to everyone that he was in love with Miu, but now Miu was gone and he had moved on this quickly? He knew that's not how it was, but how should he explain that? Maybe the simplest answer was best...

"I uh... Yeah..."

His mom looked back in at Shigure and then back at him. He supposed his red face confirmed most of it anyway.

"Ok then. Well, I have to finish getting dinner ready so you should go out there before your dad goes crazy."

They spent the rest of the evening talking. Shortly before they started dinner Honoka burst through the front door. She ran up and hugged Kenichi and then Shigure. She was crying. Somehow she had found out about everything already.

Great... I bet I know who I can thank for this getting out... Niijima was the only person that Kenichi could think of that would somehow know about all this.

She eventually calmed down and they sat down for dinner. They didn't talk much. After dinner he helped his mom clean up and Honoka talked with Shigure. Then everyone went to their respective rooms, which left Kenichi and Shigure alone. They hadn't talked much since they got there.

"So... how are you doing? I can go up to my room and get it ready for you..."

Shigure didn't say anything, she just got up and sat next to him. She leaned on his shoulder and closed her eyes. He put his arm around her and kissed her hair. They fell asleep like this.

* * *

><p>Niijima sat staring at his computer screen in his office at Shinpaku headquarters, he didn't know what to say. A week later and he still didn't know what to say or do. He had been at Ryozanpaku and seen it all happen, he had gone there to talk to Kenichi. Instead he had hidden and watched. He couldn't have done anything anyway... Certainly not against someone who could kill the masters like that... He saw when he killed Miu... And then he saw when Shigure arrived. The change that came over Kenichi when she was threatened was interesting, and then it was frightening. He tore that guy apart like it was nothing. Since when did Kenichi have that sort of power? Still, he sat speechless and watched. Finally, after everything had finished he got up and left. He just went home and slept. What could he do? The only thing he could was try to find out who that guy was, but even his best searches turned up nothing. This guy was well and truly off the grid, and when dealing with someone, or possibly multiple someones, this powerful he didn't want to send any of his people out to ask questions. That would be far too dangerous. He hoped that guy had been acting alone, because if he had friends... and if they came around... He shuddered.<p>

Tanimoto came inside the room and shut the door. Niijima looked over at him.

"Can I help you?"

Tanimoto didn't say anything. He just walked over and sat down in a chair across from him.

"What's up? Don't say nothing because I can tell something is wrong. All this last week you've been shut up in here working on something."

Niijima looked at him and gave him his best evil grin. "I don't know what you're talking abou-"

"Cut the shit man, just spill it."

There was a long pause and then Niijima drew a breath. He started from the beginning. Telling him how it happened, about how he was doing what he could to try to find any accomplices the guy might have had. He didn't want to endanger anyone by telling them, but he figured Tanimoto could handle himself.

"So... that little dork killed someone?" He sighed "And all but one of the masters are dead?! That guy must have been unbelievably strong..."

"Look, I don't want this getting out. If this guy has friends they're gonna want revenge. The fewer people involved the better."

"Yeah...still, someone should check up on Kenichi."

Niijima looked over at his computer.  
>"Well he and the scary sword lady appear to have gone to his house, they've been there for a few hours. Not a bad idea for them to get out of Ryozanpaku before any possible friends show up, but they shouldn't stay at his house too long either."<p>

"Yeah... I'll keep an eye on them. If they're still there in the morning I'll have a talk with them. They need to lay low, possibly get out of town." Tanimoto sighed, "What a mess..."

Niijima walked him to his office door to let him out. When they opened the door Honoka was standing there, hands shaking. Her eyes were red and she looked scared.

"Honoka did you hear-"

Before he could finish his sentence, she dashed away towards the exit. Tanimoto looked at Niijima and told him he would keep an eye on her too. She was probably going home. He hurried after her.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note:  
>Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. I have two stories going right now, and I've been pretty absorbed in writing the other. Hopefully you'll enjoy this one.<p>

* * *

><p>Chapter 6<p>

"You two do realize that he may not have been acting alone, right?"

Tanimoto had gone to Kenichi's house when he saw that they had not left. He knew it could be dangerous for them to hang around, especially for Kenichi's family.

"I... hadn't thought about that. I suppose it is possible, but it seems crazy. One insanely strong person coming out of nowhere I can sort of believe, but a group of them?"

Tanimoto shook his head.

"At this point it doesn't matter how many of them there may or may not be, you guys need to move on soon. It may be difficult to hear, but you may even need to leave the city. Maybe even the country."

Kenichi was getting angry, not at Tanimoto, but at the thought that that bastard might have friends. Maybe he was even working for someone. If there were others...

"I know what you're thinking. If there are others, you want to get revenge. I understand that, but until we find out more about them you need to lay low. Don't draw too much attention to yourselves."

Kenichi nodded and looked at Shigure. She hadn't said anything, but she had a peculiar scowl on her face. This was a look he hadn't seen before.

"Shigure... what's up? Looks like you have something you want to say."

She looked up and took a deep breath.

"It's true... there may be... more. If that's true..."

She cut off her sentence there, but she didn't need to finish it. Kenichi knew what she meant. She wanted vengeance as much as he did. However, the fact was that Tanimoto was right. If even Niijima, with his seemingly vast and shady resources, could not find out anything about this guy then it would be best to find somewhere to lay low until he did.

"Shigure, he's right. We can't go looking for someone without even a place to start. We have no idea who he was or why he came."

Shigure nodded and proceeded to tell them about a place she stayed when she was out searching for her father's swords. It sounded like a good place to stay for a while, so Kenichi went inside to say goodbye to his family.

After all the goodbyes were done Shigure gave the location to Tanimoto so he could relay the information to Niijima if he needed to contact them, and they headed out.

"I had no idea you had another place you stayed sometimes."

"I've never... shown anybody... It was a refuge... of sorts..."

Kenichi looked at her and then back to where he was walking.

"I guess everyone needs a place where they can be by themselves sometimes. Are you sure you're OK with me going there?"

She looked at him and smiled.

"If it's you then... it's ok..."

They were silent for some time. Kenichi turned his thoughts to the man that had attacked them. How could it be that someone could just come out of nowhere and be so much stronger than all his masters? It didn't make sense. Especially if there were more like him. How could such strong people remain completely off the radar?

"So... do you think that guy was working alone?"

"I don't know... but if there are more... we will... deal with them..."

WE will deal with them. Hearing her say this made him happy, but it also brought up feelings of dread. If there were more, it would be more than likely that they were as strong or stronger than the man he had killed. If that was the case... No... he wouldn't let anything happen to her... He couldn't... He didn't think he could take any more loss, especially not her.

He started walking closer to her and reached for her hand. Her fingers entwined with his and he saw a smile on her face.

* * *

><p>The man with the mustache and the woman with red hair stood in a stunned silence at the scene they came upon at Ryozanpaku. They looked over at the graves and counted them.<p>

"... 4... 5... 6. Well... they're not all dead."

The woman walked over to a pile of rocks and picked something up. She showed it to the man.

"Shit... I guess he failed his mission. Damn it. This isn't good. Six graves? That means there's still two of them out there. We need to find them."

The woman nodded. This was supposed to have been a simple mission, but it had turned into a total shit-show. The man walked over to her and put an arm around her waist.

"I guess we won't be able to go back just yet. We need to finish what he started."

"I still can't believe he was killed. It should have been easy for him, what happened?"

"Who knows? I'm gonna miss the poor bastard, but maybe death was the best thing for him. If he had lived knowing that he hadn't completed his mission it would be just one more thing he would have to live with."

She looked down at her feet and then leaned over and kissed him on the forehead.

"We won't fail him. We'll complete his mission and head back to the boss with the report."

The mustache man nodded and they walked out of the ruins of the dojo.

* * *

><p>Tanimoto walked into Niijima's office once again. He turned on the light and saw Niijima sitting with his chin resting on top of his folded hands. He was deep in thought.<p>

"Yo, I came with news on Kenichi."

Niijima looked up.

"You talked to them and now they're headed to some secret hideout outside of town that belongs to the sword woman"

Damn alien. How did he know that? There had been no one else around when they were talking about it. Had he bugged him? Tanimoto started looking around his body and patting down his clothes. Not finding any signs of being bugged, he looked up at Niijima. He had an amused look on his face.

"Well, anyway. They sent me with the location, but I guess you already know that too."

He simply nodded.

"Right... so... have you figured anything out?"

Niijima maintained his silence and motioned to a monitor at his side. It looked like security camera footage. It showed the ruins of Ryozanpaku.

"Look... it's as I feared..."

Niijima fiddled with the controls for a moment and the video now showed two figures standing in the ruins. One was an average sized yet extremely muscled man with a large mustache. The other was a woman with waist length hair. The video was in black and white so he couldn't tell what color the hair was.

"Oh shit... you think these are friends of that guy?"

Niijima nodded.

"That's what I'm afraid of. I ran a search on people matching these descriptions and it came up with no one. All we've learned from this is that there are now two more people involved and they're just as mysterious as the first."

Tanimoto rubbed his forehead. This just went from 'really shitty' to 'oh god why'.

"Do you want to tell Kenichi? It may be best to monitor these two and tell him when we have more info."

"Yes, that's exactly what I was going to say. Listen, Tanimoto, I wouldn't normally ask you to do something like this but I don't want to involve anyone else."

"You want me to follow them?"

Niijima nodded again.

"Be extremely careful. We don't know what they're capable of, but we do know that their friend was able to easily kill the strongest masters we know... er... knew."

Tanimoto left the building and headed towards where the two had last been seen. He would have to start there to pick up their trail.

* * *

><p>Shigure led him to a dilapidated looking hut. Kenichi frowned. So this was the place she had been talking about. He had expected something a bit more... not a shack. She unlocked the door and stepped inside. He followed her through the door and found himself in a room that caught him off guard. The inside of the house was fully furnished and very clean. From the outside it had looked as if there were holes in the walls, and the roof looked as if it were about to cave in. On the inside however, there were no such signs of dilapidation.<p>

"This is... impressive."

She showed showed him around. Not only was the main room pretty nice, but there was also a nice bedroom and a full-sized bathroom with a shower.

She sat down on the bed and looked at him.

"It's all quite nice. I never would have thought it would be something like this. I'm almost surprised you didn't spend more time here."

"I did until you... came for training..."

He smiled and walked over to her. He grabbed her hands and pulled her to her feet and kissed her. It had been a while since he had been able to do that. He stepped back and looked her in the eyes. She was smiling as she leaned in to kiss him again. They fell over onto the bed and continued their kiss, holding each other close. Sleep took hold of them both and they passed the night in each others' arms.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Mrs. Shirahama was busy working in the kitchen. Her husband would wake up soon, and she liked to have breakfast ready for him. Her thoughts, however, were not of her husband. She was thinking of her son. He was an adult and could take care of himself, but the recent events had made her worry. Even if he had always gotten himself into dangerous situations, this one was different. People had died. He had killed someone. It was the person responsible for the deaths, but killing anyone would leave a mark on someone. What he had told them before leaving had scared her. There might be more like that man? She shuddered.

As she was walking over to set the table there was a knock at the door. She walked over and looked out the window. It was a man she had never seen before. She stepped over and opened the door a bit.

"Mrs. Shirahama? Sorry to bother you so early, but I'm looking for your son."

There was something weird about this guy. He was acting friendly, but he had a dangerous air about him.

"Sorry, he's not here. Is he… in some sort of trouble?"

The man smiled and crossed his arms.

"No, no… nothing serious. I just…"

The man sighed.

"Are you sure you haven't at least SEEN him recently? Or know of a place where I might find him?"

A thousand red flags shot up in her mind. She didn't like this man.

"No… I haven't seen him for some time and he doesn't live here anymore. Now if you'll please excuse me, I have to finish preparing breakfast for my husband before he gets up."

The man frowned and ran his hand across his mustache.

"Well, that's a shame… Sorry to have bothered you… Have a nice day…"

She quickly shut the door and locked it. She looked back out the window and saw him walking away. When he reached the street he stood and stared at the house for a moment before moving on. That man was bad news, she was sure of it.

"I hope Kenichi is alright…"

* * *

><p>Kenichi woke up to the sound of movement in the other room. He quickly got dressed and went to check. Shigure was practicing with her sword. He could see the results of what appeared to be a straw dummy massacre on the ground, and she was standing in the middle of it, breathing deeply. She was covered in sweat, which was making the straw stick to her skin. She noticed him in the doorway.<p>

"How long have you been out here?" He asked.

She looked to the clock on the wall and thought for a minute.

"A few… hours…"

He walked up to her and started to brush the straw off.

"Well… You could have woke me. It would be good to get as much training in as possible."

"You were sleeping… soundly… "

"There will be plenty of time for sound sleeping when we're sure this is all over."

Shigure made a stubborn face and pointed at him with the tip of her sword.

"You still need… sleep…"

Kenichi nodded, there was no arguing. Their relationship may have changed a lot, but she was still his master. He went over to the wall and grabbed a sword from the stand.

"I'm awake now, so let's get some training in."

Without hesitating she lunged at him. Training with her always kept him on his toes. Her attacks, to an untrained eye, would seem erratic. He knew the truth though. Her attacks were meant to be unpredictable, possibly even more so while training him. Her level of skill allowed her to even simulate multiple attackers. It was all he could do to keep up, but he liked to think that he was improving.

*SMACK*

The blunt side of her blade came into contact with his arm right above the elbow and he dropped the sword.

"You let yourself… get distracted… In true combat, you would have… lost the arm…"

He rubbed his arm. That was going to leave a bruise. He bent down to pick up the sword, but she was already on top of him. Literally. He found himself laying on his back, and she had pinned his wrists to either side with her hands.

"What are you-"

His question was cut off by her kiss. She let go of his arms and he wrapped them around behind her. She was sitting right below his waist with a leg on either side, and he could feel himself… respond. She pulled back from the kiss and looked him in the eyes. Her eyes were so beautiful. SHE was so beautiful.

"Shigure… I love you."

She smiled and replied, "I love you… too…"

Suddenly she stood up and walked to the door of the bedroom. She looked back at him, started to remove her clothes, and stepped inside. He didn't need to ask what she was doing. He got up quickly and followed her, taking his shirt off in the process.

* * *

><p>Niijima was on the phone in his office. It seemed like he'd been spending most of his time in here as of late. Just now Tanimoto was on the phone with some disconcerting news.<p>

"Shit! How the hell did he know where Kenichi's parents lived?"

Niijima couldn't believe it. He had taken every precaution, but maybe he slipped up somewhere. As it was now, the only way someone could have known where they lived was if they already had knowledge of it.

"I don't know, but the more I follow these people the worse this feeling gets in my gut. Somethings not right with them…"

Niijima sighed.

"Where are they now?"

Tanimoto was silent for a moment.

"I don't know where the woman is, they split up a while ago. I could only follow one, and I figured they would meet up again."

That wasn't good. Not knowing where she was meant she could be anywhere. His surveillance could only cover so much of the city, and even that was limited since he was monitoring it by himself.

"Ok, just keep following him. I'll see if I can locate the other one."

"Alright."

He put the phone down and started rapidly flipping through cameras on the monitor. It took several minutes but he finally found her. She was walking towards a familiar looking building.

"OH SHIT!"

He darted out of his office and down the hall to look at the front door. It was just closing, but he didn't see her. He ran back to his office and shut the door. How the hell had she found this place?!

"Where is he?"

He jumped and yelled out. Turning around he saw the red-haired woman sitting in his chair.

"What the fuck?! How did you-"

"Can it, you little shit. I don't have time for your questions. Just tell me where the Shirahama kid is."

He tried his best to act like he didn't know who that was.

"Who-"

His chair came flying across the office and smashed into the wall beside him.

"I know you know where he is. Just cut the shit and tell me. It's in HIS best interest."

Sure… HIS best interest…

"I.. um… Even if I did know… I wouldn't tell you…"

She walked up to him and pushed him against the wall. She looked straight into his eyes.

"Where. The fuck. Is he?"

He stared back. The silence lasted for a few long seconds, then he made a rude noise with his mouth.

"You little shit!"

She shoved him into the middle of the room and he fell to his knees. This was bad. Pain would most definitely be happening soon. He closed his eyes and prepared himself.

…

Nothing. He opened his eyes and saw the door was ajar. He ran back to his computer in time to see her leaving through the front door. He grabbed his chair and set it in its place. Then he sat back down, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"God damn… That was not good…"

* * *

><p>Tanimoto was following a good distance behind him. He wasn't sure where he was heading. The man turned down an alley and Tanimoto waited a second before following behind him. When he walked a few paces he realized that the man had disappeared.<p>

"SHIT! Where did he go?"

He ran forward. Nothing. Suddenly the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he froze. There was an ominous presence right behind him. He turned and saw him standing there, grinning.

"You do realize the point of tailing someone is to NOT be seen, right?"

The man played with his mustache and looked at him, amused. How the hell had he gotten so close without him noticing? This guy was not to be trifled with. There was no way he could win in a fight with a guy like this so he played it cool.

"Ha, I guess you're right. I hadn't seen you around here before, so I decided to follow you to make sure you weren't going to cause any trouble."

"Me? Cause trouble? Ha! And what would you do if I did start... causing trouble?"

He took a step towards Tanimoto, who took a step backwards to keep some distance.

"Why... I would report it to the police! Like a good citizen!"

The man burst out laughing.

"Whatever, you punk. I know who you are, and I know why you're following me, HERMIT. Maybe you can save me some time and just tell me where the kid is."

Tanimoto's stomach lurched. What the fuck? How did this guy know who he was? He needed to get out of here, and fast.

"I- uh... I really don't know what you're talking about..."

He started to walk back towards the entrance to the alley.

"This would all be a lot easier if you'd just tell me!"

The man didn't move. He just stood there smiling and playing with his mustache.

"Sorry, man. I'm not sure what you want to hear!"

Tanimoto edged farther away and broke into a run. He ran out of the alley and into a crowded place. That guy wouldn't dare try to attack him with so many people around.

His mind went numb when he felt a strong hand on his shoulder.

"Really though... I wish you'd tell me..."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Really though... I wish you'd tell me..."

Tanimoto tried to move away, but he felt the grip on his shoulder tighten.

"Look man, I'm not going to tell you anything."

The man turned him forcibly by his shoulder so that they faced each other. He was frowning.

"Kid... I don't have time for this... I have a job to do and you're keeping me from doing it. All I need from you is a location."

Tanimoto crossed his arms and stared at him, saying nothing.

"FUCK you're stubborn! Look, I'm just trying to find the person who's responsible for killing a friend of mine!"

It was Tanimoto's turn to frown.

"That's exactly why I'm not going to tell you anything."

The man suddenly let go of his shoulder and stepped away.

"So... you won't tell me. Fine, I don't have any beef with you. I can spend my time better looking elsewhere."

Tanimoto was surprised. That's it? He was just going to let him go? The man started to walk away.

"So that's it? You're just leaving?"

"Unless you want to tell me where he is, yeah."

This didn't seem right. He had a suspicion that the man would try to follow him. He'd have to lay low for a while until he was sure he wasn't being followed.

* * *

><p>Kenichi sat up in the bed and looked over at Shigure. She had fallen asleep. He ran his fingers through her hair then slid a hand down her back. She shivered and turned over, looking at him.<p>

"Are you... ok...?"

He sighed, and then smiled.

"Yeah... I was was just thinking about how strange it was that something this good could come out of something so shitty."

They had been together since it happened. It was weeks ago now, and still they had hardly been away from each other. Sometimes he wondered, if he could go back... would he change it? If he did, the two of them might never have gotten together. But was this relationship worth the loss of so many dear friends?

He shook his head, that didn't bear thinking about. It wasn't like he could change anything anyway. Things were the way they were, the past was the past, and right now he was actually happy.

She sat up and leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder. He put his arm around her and kissed her.

They both jumped to hear a knock at the door.

* * *

><p>He had to tell them. Things were getting out of hand, and at this rate it was only a matter of time before they figured out where they were hiding.<p>

Niijima rubbed his hand across his forehead and cursed. Somehow he had to get over to where Kenichi was hiding while making sure he wasn't being followed. He had come up with a plan, but it required Tanimoto's help. The problem was that he could no longer contact him, which was worrying. Had they gotten to him? She had spared him, but that didn't mean the man would do the same for Tanimoto.

The only option left to him was the sewers. When he had picked the building for Shinpaku Alliance's headquarters, he had made sure to get one with sewer access. In times like this it would come in handy for coming and going unnoticed. Standing at the entrance, he looked in.

"Shit... Literally..."

The stakes were too high to hesitate, so he pressed on through. The smell was an abomination of nature. Something this foul shouldn't be allowed to exist.

Several hours later, he pushed open the cover and exited to the surface. Turns out the sewer ran all the way to the city limits. He was within a mile of Kenichi's hideout. Cursing the stench that clung to his clothes, he started moving, still making sure to keep out of sight just in case. He eventually came to an abandoned looking shack.

"Hmm... this is the right address but..."

He went up and knocked on the door, afraid it might fall apart. After a period of silence he heard movement on the other side. The door opened and he saw Kenichi's face peering through.

"Niijima, what the hell are you doing here? Has something happened?"

"Hey, just let me in, we need to talk.

Kenichi opened the door to let him in and closed it quickly behind him.

* * *

><p>A foul stench assaulted Kenichi's nose.<p>

"GOOD GOD! What the hell have you been doing? You smell like shit!"

Niijima explained about the sewer.

"Wait... why did you have to come here that way? Is someone watching you?!"

Kenichi suddenly felt cold. He didn't need him to say why, he knew what it meant. The man had friends, and they had come looking for him. All of this was affirmed when Niijima told him about what had happened.

"FUCK! They found my family?! Are you sure they're ok?!"

Kenichi was furious. It was bad enough that they had been to the dojo, but approaching his family... it was unforgivable.

"They didn't do anything to your family. I've been keeping an eye on them, and it seems they're trying pretty hard to find you two."

"How did they even know about the Shinpaku Alliance? This is insane! They seem to know almost everything about us, but they're still a mystery!"

"There's one other thing... I haven't heard from Tanimoto in some time... I'm afraid they might have gotten to him..."

Kenichi punched a wall, leaving a hole. He looked over at Shigure, who frowned. He would have to fix that later.

"Well... look, thanks for coming here to tell us this. You should probably stay here for a while, it sounds like it might be too dangerous to risk heading back. There's a shower in the other room, and I'm sure there's some extra clothes around here somewhere."

Niijima nodded and headed to the other room. Shigure walked up to Kenichi and they looked at each other.

"Shigure... this isn't going to go away. They need to be taken care of before they hurt anyone else. I mean, shit! It sounds like they already got to Tanimoto!"

"What are you going... to do...?"

That was the question of the day, wasn't it? There was only one way he could think of that would make this stop, but he didn't like it. He looked at Shigure and the image of the man holding her up by her throat flashed through his mind. He didn't like it, but he would do anything to protect her. Shigure understood his silence and grabbed his arm.

"No! You... can't! Not again!"

"Shigure... I have to. It's the only way this is going to end. I can't... I WON'T let people like that walk around threatening my friends and family!"

He walked over and picked up his sword.

"Then I'm... coming too."

"NO!"

He said it with more force than he meant to, but it got the point across.

"The last thing I want is to put YOU in more danger! I would never forgive myself if you got hurt. I... I can't stand that thought..."

He reached over to kiss her, but she turned her face away. There were tears in her eyes.

"Shigure I..."

She slapped him.

"You... don't think I feel that way? You say you can't stand... the thought, but what about me?! I care too!"

He couldn't take it. He understood how she felt, but it didn't change his own feelings.

"Shigure... I know you care, and I love you for that. But... there's some things a man has to take care of himself."

He left without saying another word.

* * *

><p>The sun was setting in the horizon. Shadows stretched far across the ground, and there were dark clouds beginning to form overhead. The man with the mustache stepped out from the darkness and looked at him. Behind him was the woman, red hair blowing in the wind.<p>

"So... you came to us. I guess that saves us the trouble."

He looked at the kid. He was standing there, not saying a word. His face was obscured in shadow, but he could see the glint of sharpened steel coming from his hand.

"I don't think you've thought this through kid. I don't want to fight you, I just want to know who killed our friend."

The first of the raindrops began to fall, and the distant sound of thunder rippled through the air. There was a sudden flash of lightning and he saw his face. It was anger, fear, hatred... the rain dripping from his hair was given an orange glow by the setting sun. The effect was ominous and the man got an uneasy feeling.

"It was me... I killed him."


End file.
